Miscellanies. 195 



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of astronomers, and whose reputation was truly European. Born 

 at Pesth, in Hungary, the 15th of June, 1754, he discovered at the 

 age of fifteen, a decided taste for astronomy, on the occasion of the 

 comet of 1769, and of the transit of Venus of the same year. 



After having travelled through various countries of Europe, on 

 objects of science, he was appointed, in 1786, by the Duke of Saxe 

 Gotha, to construct the beautiful observatory of Sceberg, near Go- 

 tha, which he superintended himself during several years- He pub- 

 lished at Gotha, in 1792, tables of the sun, with a catalogue of three 

 hundred and eighty one stars, and at a later period he brought out 

 other astronomical tables. In 1798, he commenced, at Weimar, the 

 publication of his Geographical Ephemerides. They were followed 

 by his monthly German correspondence published at Gotha since 

 1800. This is one of the most valuable collections of memoirs, 

 documents and astronomical notices. Having afterwards left Ger- 

 many, with the Dutchess of Saxe Gotha, to reside in a more south- 

 ern climate, he took up his abode for some years in the vicinity of 

 Marseilles, where he continued to make observations, and astronom- 

 ical and geodesical calculations, and published in French, in 1814, 

 his interesting work on the attraction of mountains. He afterwards 

 established himself at Genoa, and commenced there, in 1818, the 

 publication in French of a new astronomical Recueil, entitled Cor- 

 respondence astronomique, geographique, hydrographique et statis- 

 tique, with this epigraph : Sans franc penser en V exercise des lettres, 

 il ri*y a ni lettres, ni science, ni esprit, ni run. He issued fourteen 

 large volumes in -8vo. of this journal, prior to 1826. They contain 

 a great number of very interesting materials, on all parts of astrono- 

 my and the sciences connected with it. A severe disease, at that 

 time, assailed his robust constitution and compelled him to discontinue 

 this new work. He had recourse to the skill of Dr. Civiale, who 

 consented, at the request of Plana and Arago, to repair to Genoa, 

 to perform on the Baron the operation of trituration. The latter 

 came afterwards to Paris, that the process might be renewed as oc- 

 casion required. The latter years of his life were passed in great 

 suffering, but in possession of his usual activity of mind, interesting 

 himself constantly with astronomy, maintaining his extensive corres- 

 pondence, and working while his strength lasted. He died on the 

 2d of September last, at Paris, by an attack of Asiatic cholera, after 

 twenty four hours illness. Endowed with rare faculties, he devoted 

 to astronomy all the energy of his mind and character ; and he was 



